I remember my teenage cousin and babysitter bringing home The Terminator in the mid 1980's on VHS and forcing me to watch it with her. As an 8-year old I was terrified by the images of the future war and the Terminator machine hunting Kyle and Sarah, but I was captivated watching the movie with a blanket pulled up to just below my eyes. T2 ad T3 of course came later and kept me interested.
Flash forward tonight with TS, I come back from the theatre absolutely captivated and satisfied with McG's creation and faith in the franchise. Why? I will not go into too much detail (or spoilers) and bore you, but I will provide advice for fans and film buffs alone before you head into the theatre to see this movie. I have always been captivated by Terminator franchise because I've always put myself into Sarah and John Connor's head before watching each movie. That is exactly what I believe a film buff and even a fan needs to do to be satisfied with Terminator Salvation. The movie feels real with its war scenes realistically feeling like you are there, but also the confusion John suffers with the circumstances he experiences is felt.
Go into the theatre without expectations, do not purposefully look for references to the old films or analyze every little thing down to smallest thing. Let the confusion and fear seep into your head, like Connor himself, as the movie progresses. I believe the critics are whining about this movie because they failed to empty their heads before the going into the theatre, are upset because it's not an 'All-Arnold' movie and have way over-analyzed everything. The critics and audience opinions are very wide from one another on McG's creation because the critics had way too high expectations. Ladies and Gentlemen, the war against the machines has arrived, it feels real and scary, the actors' performances (all of them...big props to Anton Yelchin) was genuine and the human redemption factor is beautifully played out. McG kept the story and performances of the characters at a well-balanced level - not overly dramatic or cheesy - and enough to keep the engine running. Skynet is one evil biatch you will come to seriously hate as much as Sarah, John and Kyle expressed in the original movies. McG got it right. Give him a chance and enjoy!